Fort Collins Says ‘No’ to Old Town Roundabout

The Coloradoan reports that the proposed roundabout at the intersection of Mountain and Riverside/Jefferson is no longer a an option City of Fort Collins staff members will pursue. The intersection will most likely be expanded to more lanes with a traditional signalized intersection. That area of Old Town links the area containing the majority of the restaurants and shops with area with the major breweries, but is also an area of heavy traffic. Truckers use it to access 287 north to Laramie and beyond. Big trucks can have trouble navigating roundabouts in heavy traffic as they often have to occupy more than one lane to make it through.

The worry was that if there were a roundabout installed the truckers would avoid the area and start using other less maintained routes like Owl Canyon Road, much of which is a dirt road and would deteriorate much more quickly. It could also be harder to maintain because of it's more remote location, and could have less funding as well.